Raspberry Semifreddo Torte

This is an elegant dessert, light but filled with berry flavor — and it's much easier to make than it looks. The generous crust is made from store-bought shortbread, so rich in butter there's no need to add more. We used Walkers, a pure-butter shortbread from Scotland that's widely available in supermarkets.

Preparation

Break shortbread into pieces and pulse pieces with nuts in a food processor until finely ground.

Press firmly over bottom and 1 1/4 inches up side of a 24-centimeter springform pan. Bake crust in middle of oven 10 minutes, then cool in pan on a rack.

Make filling:

Beat eggs, 1/2 cup sugar, and a pinch of salt in a metal bowl with a handheld electric mixer at medium-high speed until doubled in volume, about 5 minutes. Set bowl over a saucepan with 1 inch of simmering water and beat custard until an instant-read thermometer registers 140°F, about 5 minutes. Continue beating over heat 3 minutes more. Remove bowl from heat and chill custard until cool, about 10 minutes.

Toss raspberries with remaining tablespoon sugar in a large fine sieve set over a bowl, then force berries through sieve, pressing on solids, and discard seeds. Fold strained raspberries into cooled custard.

Beat cream with cleaned beaters until it just holds stiff peaks and fold gently into raspberry mixture.

Spoon filling into crust, smoothing top. Wrap pan in foil and freeze at least 4 hours. (Filling will be firm but not frozen solid.)

Run a thin knife around edge of torte and remove side of pan.

Cooks' note:

·You can freeze torte up to 2 days.

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Reviews

This is a delicious dessert but BEWARE - it's a bit challenging if you don't have a handheld mixer. I didn't read the recipe very carefully before I dove in! Nonetheless, I used my Kitchenaid standing mixer to beat the eggs and sugar and then a whisk when the bowl was over simmering water. Tiring! Then, back on the kitchenAid to whip it for the last 3 minutes. This recipe goes through a lot of pots and pans but it is worth it.

Delicious! Easy and better to make a day ahead. Based on previous reviews I chose to add about 5 Tablespoons of Chambord to intensify the raspberry flavor. Served the dessert for a dinner party for 9 and everyone loved it. Some even wanted seconds.
Definitely a repeat!

Wonderfully light! I
wouldn't change a
thing about this
recipe. I was
skeptical, but the
butter in the
shortbread cookies
held the crust
together perfectly.
Used my stand mixer
for the filling, and
was grateful for it!
Wanted to keep the
dessert light, so I
replaced the
Mixed-Berry Compote
with a Lemon Whip
Cream (with
additional
raspberries on top).
A chocolate sauce
would work well too.
Rave reviews from
all tasters!

Four forks (five
really) with two
changes.
1. There is no need
to make the crust.
Just make the
semifreddo.
2. My husband makes
a chocolate sauce
that guests pour
over it - semi-sweet
chocolate, butter,
and cream.
The result is a
fabulous dessert
that everyone we
have served it to
just adores!

You'll get a good arm workout with the 15 minutes of hand beating and then pushing raspberries through a sieve .... but it's worth it. I was worried about the crust being too crumbly and added a little extra butter at another reviewer's suggestion, but I think it would have been fine without it. Mine set up beautifully in only four hours and was not runny at all. I think next time I would skip the fresh berry compote and do something chocolate on top instead.

I served this at a 5 course fancy dinner with some hesitation due to a few low ratings. My guests went wild for it. The texture was luxurious and the flavor bright and full. The mixed berry compote received less enthusiastic but still favorable comments.

Was it just me? I thought this tasted like one of those so-called "whipped yogurts" you get in a supermarket. Or maybe a cross between that and a so-so icecream. Family on the other hand, seemed to think it was alright - maybe they were just being polite. Either way, I won't be making this one again.

Excellent. My only question is this: is this supposed to be a frozen desert, or soft? After freezing it, I then put it in the refrigerator and it turned to soup...frozen or soupy is tastes great but I'm not sure how it's "meant" to be.

I have to concur with all the 4-fork reviews. This is a luscious summer dessert when berries are fresh. It is easy enough to make. I was skeptical about the crust with just the shortbread and almonds, but it came together just as promised. It's great to have a delicious dessert that could be made days in advance and frozen and then served with the berry compote.

This was delicious! I brought it to a dinner party and everyone raved. It's a light yet flavorful summer dessert. The recipe was a little more involved than I thought it would be, but it wasn't difficult. The berry compote adds extra dimension - I definitely recommend making it to go along with this.

Light, elegant, simple to make (although it seemed to me that it took longer than five minutes to reach 140 degrees while cooking, however maybe it was my thermometer). Nevertheless, it turned out perfectly, the berry flavor comes through nicely and that crust is so yummy! A lovely summer dessert!